Blasts leave casualties in Nigerian city

Two deadly bomb blasts near a crowded marketplace in Nigeria’s northeastern city of Maiduguri have left more than a dozen casualties.

Police spokesman Victor Isuku confirmed that two blasts went off minutes apart in Maiduguri, the capital city of Borno State, on Sunday. He blamed the attacks on the Boko Haram terrorist group.

Survivors said they saw several dead bodies. At least 17 people were also injured in the explosions, according to rescue workers. The exact death toll from the twin attacks is still unknown, however.

On Friday, two similar blasts in a busy market in the town of Madagali, 150 km southeast of Maiduguri, left 57 people dead and 177 others injured.

Madagali was liberated last year after months of occupation by Boko Haram terrorists.

Boko Haram started its terror campaign in 2009 with the aim of toppling the central government in Nigeria. The terrorist group has been increasingly targeting the civilian population ever since. Seven years of violence by the Takfiri group has left more than 20,000 people dead and displaced 2.6 million.

The group has extended its terror activities to Nigeria’s neighboring countries, where troops from Chad, Cameroon and Niger have been jointly battling the terrorists.

SS